The Mountain Deity (5)
The sedan carrying Lee Hyun pulled onto the riverside north road and began to accelerate.
“Care for a drink?”
Executive Director Jeong retrieved a canned beverage from the mini-fridge built into the side panel and held it out to him.
“No thank you. I’m fine.”
“Quite the cautious one, aren’t you?”
The words were clearly meant to provoke, yet
“I was taught that recklessness and bravado are the fastest shortcuts to death.”
Lee Hyun drew a hard line between himself and Executive Director Jeong.
It was a declaration that he considered the man an enemy.
The attitude was far too blatant.
For Executive Director Jeong, a survivor of the political world where one must always conceal their true feelings, this was an entirely new type of person.
In the end, he had no choice but to drink the beverage himself.
Pssht. Clack!
The sound of escaping carbon dioxide filled the cabin as he popped the tab.
“Your master gave you truly excellent instruction.”
“Yes. He was someone who became a role model for many disciples.”
Executive Director Jeong took a long swig. The repeated gulping sounds as his Adam’s apple bobbed created an oddly tense atmosphere.
He’s good at setting the mood… He’s definitely not someone to take lightly.
Lee Hyun watched the executive with wary eyes. The pressure radiating from Jeong Gyu-han was on an entirely different level from the late Team Leader Jeong.
Jeong Gyu-han, Executive Director.
A man of such high rank and prestige that no one in White Burn could claim ignorance of him.
His alias was Night Lantern.
When he channeled his magic power, dozens of spirit flames supposedly flickered around him like lanterns.
Personally handpicked by Guild Master Mo Jeong-gyeon, he had risen without a single setback—an outstanding talent who had never once tasted defeat.
One of the fewer than ten SS-rank High Rankers in the entire country.
Moreover, there were persistent underground rumors that he maintained close connections with Chinese party officials, particularly the Central Heroes Committee.
They also say he’s a second-generation overseas Chinese whose family came south during the Korean War.
Skill, politics, and personal networks—he possessed them all.
Within the guild, almost no one could treat him lightly.
Because of that, whispers had already begun to circulate: once Mo Jeong-gyeon passed away, would White Burn not become his?
He had never bothered to hide such ambitions, and Mo Jeong-gyeon herself had declared that even blood relatives would not receive the guild’s operating rights unless they were qualified.
That’s why Team Leader Lim has been politically disadvantaged. The only card she can play right now is the fact that she’s blood-related.
Lee Hyun finally understood why Lim Won-young had wanted him so desperately.
To confront an ambitious man like Executive Director Jeong, she needed allies she could trust with her back.
And…
He’s definitely not the sort of person I could ever get along with.
Lee Hyun did not miss the fact that the “scent” he had detected on the late Team Leader Jeong was far thicker on Executive Director Jeong.
The Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong opens wide and scans the surroundings.
Lee Hyun’s eyes flooded with golden light as Executive Director Jeong lowered his empty can and spoke in a casual tone.
“I heard you met with the Guild Master.”
The words themselves were anything but casual.
The meeting with Mo Jeong-gyeon had taken place barely an hour ago.
He knows everything that happens inside the company. And he isn’t even trying to hide that he knows.
It was clearly meant to apply pressure.
A warning that whatever Lee Hyun did, it all happened in the palm of his hand.
“That’s correct.”
“Did she, by any chance…”
“I think we’ve gone around in circles long enough.”
Of course, Lee Hyun had no intention of surrendering the initiative.
“Shall we get straight to the point?”
“You are… No. Very well. Let’s do that. This isn’t exactly a pleasant meeting for either of us, and there’s no need to drag it out.”
Executive Director Jeong’s eyes darkened.
“The truth is, when I arranged this meeting today, I intended to kill you immediately.”
“Yet here I am.”
“Because the Guild Master is watching. Separate from my own ambitions, I have no desire to fall out of her favor.”
Even an ambition-driven man like Jeong Gyu-han understood how dangerous Mo Jeong-gyeon could be.
“Besides, you don’t seem like the type who would die quietly.”
“I’m honored by your high evaluation.”
“Empty words. You got in this car for the same reason I did—to properly assess what kind of person the other is, correct?”
Lee Hyun answered with a smile.
Executive Director Jeong frowned.
“Not just anyone can walk calmly into the tiger’s den knowing it might kill them.”
“……”
“Especially if that courage is not mere recklessness that doesn’t know its place, but a resolve built on thorough self-awareness. That kind of will is even more frightening.”
The preface was growing long.
Yet Lee Hyun instinctively understood that this was all setup for the real subject to follow.
“There’s no need to make an enemy of such a person. No—in fact, I should make him mine.”
Executive Director Jeong, who had been staring forward the entire time, finally turned his gaze to Lee Hyun.
“How about it? Will you join me?”
“That’s an unexpected proposal.”
“I’m sure it is. No matter how detestable, he was my son. It’s not the sort of offer a father should make mere hours after that son’s death.”
“Indeed. It doesn’t seem like it.”
“Yet precisely because of that, it is all the more sincere.”
Executive Director Jeong’s eyes flashed sharply.
“My son’s greatest mistake was overestimating his own capacity. He could never have handled you.”
“But you’re different?”
“What do you think?”
“You are different. Though it’s clear… that rage is boiling inside you.”
Lee Hyun did not miss the murderous intent flickering like flames at the corners of the executive’s eyes.
The man clearly resented him. He was suppressing the urge to tear Lee Hyun apart with superhuman patience.
Yet at the same time, Lee Hyun sensed an even greater ambition—an absolute conviction that if he could obtain Lee Hyun, his own ambitions would undoubtedly succeed.
His ambition far outweighed any love he had felt for his son.
“I don’t know what offer Deputy Director Lim made you, but I can give you far more.”
Executive Director Jeong turned his gaze back toward the windshield.
The car had already slipped into a narrow side street.
“What exactly would you give me?”
“The world.”
“The world?”
Lee Hyun tilted his head.
Executive Director Jeong nodded.
“Yes. The world. You must have heard the rumors that I’m close with Chinese officials. Those rumors are true. I know they call me spineless, a Chinese lapdog, a jjing-kkae, and every other insult under the sun. However—”
Executive Director Jeong’s lips twisted.
“I guarantee you, once the project I’m working on with them is announced, they’ll all forget those insults and scramble to flatter me.”
Project.
The word lodged itself in Lee Hyun’s ear.
“It doesn’t seem like you’re going to tell me what it involves.”
“Haha. Security is important, after all. But know this much—it is related to mythology.”
A mythology-related project would mean a dungeon of at least 3-star or 4-star difficulty.
Was it connected to a relic?
“And since I know vague promises alone won’t be enough to tempt you… let me first show you my sincerity.”
Executive Director Jeong opened his palm.
A perfectly angular hexadecagonal cube appeared above it.
Whoooosh…!
Hwaan Geumjeong examines the interior of the cube.
It is difficult to determine its exact identity. Something as hot as an active volcano pulses as if it could erupt at any moment.
It possesses fire-attribute magic power.
It appears to have excellent compatibility with the Deep Breath (A) of Dokebi.
‘…!’
It was an elixir.
One that seemed perfectly suited for Lee Hyun.
“As expected. You recognized that this would suit you perfectly? It was sealed inside a containment cube, so it should have been difficult to tell. You have quite the eye.”
“…What is this?”
“A phoenix’s heart.”
“…!”
“And it comes from a specimen that is three thousand years old. I received it as a gift from my Chinese counterpart when the project began.”
◈ A heart left behind by the Bennu after countless cycles of extinction and rebirth.
◈ Born at the boundary between life and death, it contains brilliant flames that purify all evil and can resurrect even a life that has already been extinguished from ashes.
◈ Type: Elixir
◈ Origin: Legend of the Book of the Dead
◈ The Bennu is an Egyptian mythical bird with golden or red feathers. It is said to burn in flames every thousand years and rise again from its ashes.
◈ Symbolizes death and regeneration, the cycle of the sun, and rebirth through fire. A treasure all hunters desperately desire.
Consuming this would be like gaining an extra life.
And that wasn’t all. It would dramatically increase stamina and endurance while greatly enhancing fire-related attributes.
Rapid growth would follow.
Especially for Lee Hyun, it was a treasure that could not be more suitable.
It would reinforce his lightning attribute while maintaining horizontal balance with the narrative of the Book of the Dead residing in his body.
He brought it to shake me.
“As you know, this is something everyone wants but few can obtain. An elixir that can turn someone into a Ranker simply by consuming it.”
“……”
“The project overseers told me to consume it and become a top Ranker as quickly as possible. But that’s easier said than done. So I’d rather give it to you as a gift.”
Executive Director Jeong’s eyes burned with intensity.
“How about it? Can you feel my desire to possess you? I think this demonstrates my sincerity quite clearly.”
“I feel it clearly. Now that I understand your sincerity, I will consider it carefully during my period of self-reflection.”
Lee Hyun nodded quietly.
For a moment, Executive Director Jeong simply stared at him.
“……”
“……”
A heavy silence flowed between them.
And then—
“…It doesn’t look like you’re considering it at all.”
Displeasure flashed across Executive Director Jeong’s face.
“Tsk. So that’s how it is. You’ve made a mistake here.”
“I will consider it carefully.”
“Consider it, huh…”
Executive Director Jeong smiled bitterly.
“Fine. That’s not bad either. Taking time to think means you’re being cautious. But you have no intention of accepting. May I ask why?”
“Even if I explained, I don’t think you would understand.”
“I see… Then it can’t be helped. It really can’t be helped.”
Executive Director Jeong’s voice sank deeply.
It had become impossible to read his thoughts from his tone any longer.
The car came to a stop.
They were in front of Lee Hyun’s house.
Click.
The door unlocked.
“Get out. If the opportunity arises again, we’ll meet at the company.”
“Thank you for the ride.”
“Not at all. It was a short but very entertaining time.”
The moment Lee Hyun fully stepped out of the car, Executive Director Jeong suddenly tossed the cube toward him.
“Take it. Don’t feel burdened. Consider it a gift for indulging my whim and amusement today. Go on.”
Without waiting for a reply, Executive Director Jeong closed the door. The sedan pulled away immediately.
As Lee Hyun watched it disappear, Sun Wukong descended beside him.
“What the hell is that bastard playing at? He gives the enemy who killed his son a ride home and even hands over a gift? That’s it?”
“He now knows exactly where I live. It was probably a warning that he can come for me anytime he wants. And this…”
A cold smile formed on Lee Hyun’s lips as he looked at the cube.
“I think it means he wants me to keep my own heart in here with it. They say a phoenix’s heart can be inherited by another person after its owner dies.”
It was an expression of confidence—that even if it helped Lee Hyun for now, he could retrieve it whenever he wished.
Just as Lee Hyun had taken a son who was as precious as life itself from him, he would take everything from Lee Hyun—including his life.
It was quite a chilling message.
Nevertheless, Lee Hyun casually tossed Bennu’s Heart into his inventory.
There’s no way I’m consuming something with unknown devices planted inside. There will be another use for it later.
Even so, the time spent with Executive Director Jeong had not been wasted.
He had gained a great deal of information.
China.
A certain project.
And that “scent” as well…
With this, he could be certain.
“If I keep pressing that man, Seo Chang-woo will definitely show up.”
The moment Lee Hyun returned home, he immediately began searching for his next destination.
Although he had received a five-day self-reflection order, he could still access the intranet.
Thanks to that—
Activating the Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong to search for locations related to the scattered myth of [REDACTED].
Searching…
I’ve already unlocked two additional functions out of the six stats. The remaining four should open soon as well.
The additional functions that unlocked after a stat exceeded 100 granted hunters far greater power than before.
And once all six additional functions were unlocked, one would step into a new world—the true beginning of what it meant to be a hunter.
The world of Rankers.
Because of this, Lee Hyun expected that the range of dungeons he could now choose from had widened significantly.
And sure enough—
Search complete.
Three matching locations have been found.
“Oho! Just by clearing one place you’ve grown this much, and now there are three more! My apostle really will become strong quickly, Senior Brother!”
“Kaaak! He’s my apostle, not ours!”
“Don’t be so stingy. We’re martial brothers—can’t we share an apostle? In that spirit, can I have a taste of that tofu pudding you’re eating?”
Sun Wukong wrapped his entire body around the spoon and the tofu pudding he had been enjoying.
“No! This is mine! That guy is mine too!”
“So greedy. How petty.”
“What? Petty?!”
Leaving the two bickering deities—or rather, the two gods—behind, Lee Hyun was about to check the list of the three dungeons when—
Rattle. Rattle.
The brooch he had clipped to his collar suddenly began to shake violently.
“…What is this?”
It was one of the linked branches he had shared with Go Jin-woo.
The branch that was supposed to shake only in moments of crisis was trembling as if it would break apart.